What Is Red Velvet Cake?

Updated: Jun. 29, 2023

Ever wonder "what is red velvet cake?" What about what makes it so darn red? We share where it comes from and why it's so good.

Red velvet cake and cream cheese frosting are an integral part of the American dessert experience. But between bites, we’ve all asked ourselves what is red velvet cake exactly? It’s not quite chocolate, it’s not quite vanilla, but it is completely delicious.

We share the details of this unique cake and its delightful history.

What Is Red Velvet Cake?

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Red velvet cake is a vibrantly colored cake that’s typically topped with cream cheese frosting. This uniquely American dessert gets its potent color from plenty of red food coloring.

And you’re certainly wondering what flavor is red velvet cake? This cake is flavored with a small amount of cocoa powder and vanilla extract. Some recipes also call for buttermilk which can also add depth of flavor.

The Colorful History of Red Velvet Cake

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In her award-winning cookbook Bravetart: Iconic American Desserts, Stella Parks explains that the first “Velvet Cocoa Cake” was published back in 1911 in an Ohio newspaper.

Over the years, variations of this dessert spread across the States. In the South, bakers added buttermilk to the cocoa-infused batter which gave the cake a reddish cast. This earned the cake the nickname “Red Devil” (a name that combined the devil’s food flavor and red color), in the 1920s, according to Stella.

As time went on, bakers began to see this red color as an asset and sought to augment it with a drop or two of food coloring. Soon, red dye became an essential part of the recipe and, as Stella writes in Bravetart, the term “red velvet” was finally coined in a 1951 edition of a Texas newspaper, the Santa Cruz Sentinel.

Red Velvet Cake and the Waldorf Astoria

Red velvet fanatics may also be aware of another version of this cake’s history. Many foodies believe that this cake was created in the kitchen at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City.

However, not even Hilton, the company that runs this storied hotel today, can quite pinpoint its origins. Though, it is safe to say that this cake grew in popularity thanks to its inclusion on the Waldorf Astoria menu.

The Significance of Red Velvet and Juneteenth

While red velvet cake wasn’t part of the American food landscape when Juneteenth was first celebrated, it became an integral part of the holiday over the decades. Red is a symbolic color for this celebration and red food is a major part of Juneteenth menus.

That’s because African cultures, including the Yoruba, Kongo and Asante, used the color in important celebrations and to symbolize power. Additionally, red is a nod to the blood shed by enslaved peoples.

Red Velvet Cake vs. Chocolate Cake

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When you look at a recipe for red velvet cake, you’ll notice that it does include cocoa powder. However, compared to a traditional chocolate cake, this amount is fairly minimal.

For example, our top-rated red velvet cake contains 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder. In contrast, our most popular chocolate cake recipe contains 3/4 of a cup of cocoa.

This means that red velvet cake has a more subtle cocoa flavor overall, but one that’s no less delicious.

What Makes Red Velvet Cake Red

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When this cake first came onto the food scene in the early 20th century, red velvet cake wasn’t truly red. Rather, this cocoa-infused cake had a slightly brick-colored tone. This was thanks to the combination of the particular cocoa powder available in the early- and mid-20th century and the buttermilk or vinegar in the batter.

As time went on, cocoa powder was processed slightly differently (meaning it was no longer quite as acidic) and red velvet recipes required red dye to achieve the desired hue.

Don’t want to use red food coloring in your red velvet cake? You can try a few other methods to create a vibrant dessert. First, you can try naturally derived food colorings. Watkins makes a natural red food dye that’s completely interchangeable in recipes.

You can also use beet powder to add color. This veggie-based powder is mellow in flavor so it shouldn’t impact the taste of the cake much. Know that beet powder tends to give red velvet cakes more of a magenta tone rather than a warm red.

No matter how you decide to color this cake, it’s sure to be a real treat.

Get Inspired with These Red Velvet Recipes

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Taste of Home

Grandma’s Red Velvet Cake In our family no one thinks it’s the holidays without this Red Velvet Cake recipe. I baked the first one for Christmas in 1963 when I found the recipe in the newspaper and my Mother kept the tradition going into the ’80s. It’s different than other Red Velvet Cakes I’ve tasted over the years, since this one tastes only mildly chocolate and the icing is as light as snow. —Kathryn H. Davison, Charlotte, North Carolina Go to Recipe Looking for a healthier alternative? Don't forget to check out this gluten-free red velvet cake.

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Red Velvet Cinnamon RollsTurn a box of red velvet cake mix into this easy dessert—or breakfast! The icing tastes good and makes a pretty contrast with the rolls. —Erin Wright, Wallace, Kansas